The Last Toast
by don't hate me cuz i'm liberal
Summary: They took with them the memory of a beautiful night. They took with them the memory of the last dance, the last toast, and the last time they would say solemnly, “I serve at the pleasure of President Josiah Bartlet”.


Disclaimer: Don't own anything, don't sue me.

The Last Toast

They're all there, he realizes, standing in the half light of the fireplace, watching his old staff mingle and laugh. He had invited them all, and hoped, but hadn't expected that they would all come. There was CJ, standing with Charlie, holding a sparkling glass of champagne and smiling demurely. There was Toby, stoic and silent, half in a corner, half in the party. There were the faithful assistants, Carol, Bonnie, Ginger and Margaret, huddled together near a window. Every so often they would laugh uproariously, but he saw Margaret wipe her eyes furtively, then claim she had allergies. There was Josh, striding through the door with his commanding air and immediately looking around for her. His Donnatella. There was Will, standing awkwardly with Leo and talking about God only knew what. There, amazingly enough, were Sam and Ainsley, flushed and laughing from their plane rides. There were his daughters, and his grandchildren, and his beautiful, beautiful wife. Now, from the corner of his eye he saw Donna slip in through a sliding door, slipping her cell phone into her pocket and, catching Will's eye, smiling reassuringly, crisis averted.

He can't get over the changes in them all. Leo, a little crustier, stands and beams at all of them, so happy to be alive. CJ, still young at heart has a quiet gravity as she hugs Donna and demands that Larry and Ed turn some music on. Josh, while he moves throughout the party, is clearly staring at Donna. He doesn't know it, but she stares back.

Larry turns on the music, and suddenly the somber mood is lifted. They forget, for an instant that they spent the afternoon cleaning out their desks and saying their goodbyes. Leo found Margaret in his closet, crying. Shockingly enough, she claimed that she was allergic to his coats, and left with a dignified sniff. Donna had come back, and helped everyone pack the contents of their desks. When CJ started crying, and Toby looked like he was going to lose it, she had rounded everyone up and gotten them dancing to Salsa music in the communications bullpen.

They danced the night away, laughing and drinking as the clock ticked closer to midnight. At eleven thirty, the mood of the party shifted. Ed whispered something to Larry, and the next thing they all knew, they were listening to "Closing Time".

_Closing time  
Open all the doors and let you out into the world  
Closing time  
Turn all of the lights on over every boy and every girl  
_And suddenly, they were all watching Josh, as he put his beer down on the table and turned and walked towards Donna. She had her back to him, but she turned, and suddenly they were only standing a foot away from each other.

"Donnatella," he breathed, staring at her.

"Joshua," she answered, smiling lightly at him. Something shifted and cleared in Josh's expression. He grinned at her delightedly. "Donnatella," he began again, "Do you know how long I've wanted to kiss you for?"

"Joshua Lyman," she grinned back, "I have absolutely no idea."

"Eight years, Donnatella," he said, grinning harder, "Eight incredibly long years."

She smirked at him, "How about that?" she said, and she turned and would have walked away, but Josh grabbed her elbow and spun her around. He pulled her into his arms, and suddenly, everyone was watching Donna and Josh as they kissed. They watched as Donna's arms wound around Josh's neck, and they watched as Josh tangled his hand in her hair and pulled her closer to him. They watched the brilliant lights fall on them as the music played on.

_Closing time  
One last call for alcohol so finish your whiskey or beer  
Closing time  
You don't have to go home but you can't stay here _

_I know who I want to take me home  
I know who I want to take me home  
I know who I want to take me home_

Toby handed CJ a tissue, and held her while she watched the two people, so blind and in love sway on the dance floor.

_Closing time  
Time for you to go out to the places you will be from  
Closing time  
This room won't be open till your brothers or your sisters come  
So gather up your jackets, move it to the exits  
I hope you have found a friend  
Closing time  
Every new beginning comes from some other beginning's end_

_I know who I want to take me home  
I know who I want to take me home  
I know who I want to take me home  
Take me home_

"All right," Jed Bartlet called as the song came to a close and Donna laughed a little as she wiped her eyes. "Sam and Toby didn't write this toast for me, so you're going to have to bear with me," he said playfully over a chorus of groans. "To all of you," he said, lifting his glass, "To having gotten me elected twice, and to President-Elect Santos, who is a truly great man and who will be, I believe, historic. To Leo, my best friend, who I couldn't have done this without. To Toby, whose writing pulled us through the hard times. To Josh, who made sure that we won the important battles. To CJ," he said, grinning now, "For reminding us all that we should never, ever let Josh do the briefings, and for being their for all of when we needed to make a 'first call'. To—I'm going to interrupt myself now," he said, lowering his glass a little and turning to Josh, "Josh, are you ever going to let that poor girl go?" He asked Josh, who hadn't stopped grinning since he had said, "Donnatella".

"No, Mr. President," Josh replied, tightening his arms around Donna, "I wasn't planning on it, sir."

"Good," the President replied, "To all of you, who helped me through the best and darkest times of my life, and to Abby, for, above all, making sure that I keep my priorities straight. Cheers!"

The party was over then. They drifted out, in twos and threes. They took with them the memory of a beautiful night. They took with them the memory of the last dance, the last toast, and the last time they would say solemnly, "I serve at the pleasure of President Josiah Bartlet".

Fin.


End file.
